City attorney Craig Tindall is convinced the recent increase can’t be reversed
By Lisa Halverstadt – Sept. 12, 2012 09:21 AM
The Arizona Republic
Legal questions about a ballot measure to reverse Glendale’s sales-tax increase may continue even if voters approve the initiative in November.
The initiative aims to reduce the city’s 0.7 percentage-point sales-tax increase and require a public vote on future increases, but attorneys disagree on whether that can be accomplished.
A court is unlikely to take up such questions unless voters pass the measure later this year and the city or someone else challenges it.
The state Court of Appeals recently ruled that the measure belongs on the ballot, but declined to weigh in on its constitutionality. The appeals panel said that could be decided later, if voters approve it. The city turned to the state Supreme Court, which declined to hear the case.
Glendale auto-dealership owner Dave Kimmerle, who has been one of the most vocal backers of the initiative, said the city failed to consider how a sales-tax increase would affect residents’ and business owners’ bottom lines.
Interim City Manager Horatio Skeete said the stakes are high for Glendale.
Also:
From The Arizona Republic
Glendale officials meet to discuss possible sales-tax reversal
